The 5th United States Colored Cavalry was a regiment of the United States Army organized as one of the units of the United States Colored Troops during the American Civil War. The 5th USCC was one of the more notable black fighting units. It was officially organized in Kentucky in October 1864, after its first two battles. It was commanded by Colonel James Brisbin until February 1865, when he took over the 6th US Colored Cavalry. His executive officer, Louis Henry Carpenter, commanded the regiment until 20 March 1866.
The regiment was composed of ex-slaves, freedmen, and slaves who had escaped to Union lines. Many white officers from the unit were later assigned to the famed Buffalo Soldiers cavalry units who operated during the Indian Wars in the West. Many USCC soldiers (later called troopers) volunteered for further service after their Civil War units were retired. This regiment is not to be confused with the 5th Massachusetts Colored Cavalry.
Organization
In the early months of 1864, General Stephen Gano Burbridge, commander of the Military District of Kentucky, issued General Order No. 24/ This authorized the formation of colored units in his command. They were composed of ex-slaves, freedmen, and slaves who had escaped to Union lines. Although the unit was not officially formed as part of the United States Colored Troops until 24 October 1864, it saw combat on two different occasions.
Its first major encounter was on 2 October 1864, in and around the salt works of Saltville, Virginia. When word of Burbridge's raid reached the 5th USCC, the regiment had yet to be officially organized until after they returned from the raid. At the time of the battle, over 600 colored soldiers joined General Burbridge in the, as yet unorganized, 5th USCC. Although the regiment consisted of black cavalrymen, the officers of the regiment were required to be white. The white officers would then organize noncommissioned field officers among the ranks of the black soldiers to fill the positions of sergeants. However, Lieutenant Colonel L. Henry Carpenter soon realized that his newly formed black troops were illiterate. Therefore, Carpenter petitioned command to place white noncommissioned officers in charge of the black units. His request was granted, and hastily the 5th USCC was formed. Some soldiers had not officially enlisted; few officers had been appointed, and fewer non-commissioned officers (NCO) were assigned. Yet Colonel James F. Wade was temporarily placed in charge of the group with orders to join Burbridge in Kentucky. In his haste to create the unit, Wade mounted his 600 men on untrained horses and supplied them with Enfield infantry rifles. These were useless to mounted men as they could not be loaded from horseback. In comparison, the troops of the 11th Michigan and 12th Ohio cavalries were armed with Spencer repeating carbines, which were wholly effective from horseback.
General Burbridge had been ordered by General Grant to proceed into southwest Virginia and destroy the salt works at Saltville. The 5th USCC, therefore, was attached to Colonel Brisbin's forces and joined Burbridge in Prestonburg, Kentucky. Burbridge left Prestonburg on 27 September to march towards Saltville. White troops resented the blacks and subjected them to ridicule. They sometimes pulled their hats off or stole their horses, but the black soldiers conducted themselves with professional conduct.
Battle of Saltville and the 5th USCC
The 5th USCC participated in the Battle of Saltville I on 1–3 October 1864, as part of the Union forces under the command of General Stephen Gano Burbridge. Despite valiant attempts to break through Confederate lines, the cavalry was repeatedly repulsed. The Union forces were defeated. In the ensuing hours after its finish, Confederate partisans, led by Champ Ferguson, murdered captured and wounded Union soldiers, notably members of the 5th USCC, in their hospital beds. Ferguson was arrested after the war had ended and tried for the murders. He was convicted in the trial in Nashville and sentenced to death by hanging. He was one of only three men to be executed for war crimes that took place during the American Civil War.
Stoneman's 1864 Winter Raid
In December 1864, General George Stoneman ordered the 5th USCC to participate in a raid from East Tennessee into southwestern Virginia. This resulted in engagements that involved the 5th USCC at Hopkinsville, Kentucky on 12 December, Kingsport, Tennessee on 13 December, the Battle of Marion near Marion, Virginia on 17 & 18 December, and the second Battle of Saltville on 20 & 21 December near Saltville, Virginia. All were considered Union victories.